THIS MONTH’S ACTIVITY: On Saturday, April 28, we will go to Grants to visit the Uranium Mining Museumand Ice Caves. Lunch at El Cafecito. Please see Jeff’s article in this newsletter for details.

BREAKFAST GROUP: Please note. The Breakfast Group will meet on Saturday, April 7 at 8:30 a.m. atRich Ford’s Mustang Café.

NEXT BOARD MEETING: Tuesday, May 8, 7:30 p.m., at Jay Hertz’ home, 8704 La Sala Del Sur, NE. Jay’shome phone number is 296-3137. See Jay’s article in this newsletter for details. All members are welcome.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE FOR APRIL 2012Jay Hertz, PresidentOn my ten-hour drive back from the Chickasha pre-war swap meet last week, I had plenty of time to thinkabout the condition of our hobby. As with many things, I think it’s a mixed bag.The Chickasha meet was mildly disappointing. Many fewer vendors, and fewer flathead parts or accessoriesthan previous years. Even Chevrolet parts, usually in great abundance, were scarce. I can’t blame it on theweather, which was perfect. I could possibly blame it on the high price of gas, since many vendors drive toChickasha from other parts of the country, and several vendors mentioned the high cost of fuel as a reasonfor their high prices on their inventory. Perhaps the ease of buying parts and cars on the Internet isresponsible for some of the decline in attendance at meets like the one in Chickasha. I have frequently founditems on eBay that I never would expect to find at a swap meet. Internet sellers have a world-wide audienceof buyers, not just the few hundred who happen to attend a swap meet. So it’s no wonder that many vendorsskip the meets and focus instead on Internet sales.But I feel that there is some slippage in the public’s interest in the older cars generally. This is particularlytrue of the pre-war era cars. Many of today’s hobbiests don’t remember the pre-war era. Those who do are,in some cases, beyond the stage of life where they actively buy cars or parts. I think there is a naturaltendency for people to favor the cars of the era in which they grew up. For many of us, that was the 1950sor 1960s. Whereas cars of that time still seem to generate huge interest (and some huge pricetags), the carsfrom the 1930s and 1940s are largely too old to be remembered as daily transportation, and hence are notthe subject of our nostalgia.The cars of the 1930s and 1940s are also suffer other disadvantages. They can’t compete with later modelson the highway in terms of speed, braking ability or reliability. Their replacement parts are harder to locate.Fewer reproduction parts are available for them, when compared to models of the 1950s or 1960s. Theirvalues in the marketplace frequently pale in comparison to the values of corresponding 1950s or 1960smodels.But, in my judgment, the things that make the pre-war cars less sought-after, really make them morevaluable as collector items. They are more unique, less often seen, and harken to a lesser-known part ofour history. Their styling is often much more graceful, and the appearance of a phaeton, convertible sedanor roadster really piques my attention, since they have been obsolete for so many decades. Given a choicebetween driving a 1950s or 1960s model, and a comparable pre-war car, you would find me in the pre-warcar any day of the week.When we display our flatheads at places like the State Fair, they do seem to spark the interest of people ofall ages, even those born long after these cars were daily transportation. At a show like the State Fair show,people get to see a sight not available except in a museum. Many people attending such a show will neverhave seen a pre-war car up close, much less have had a chance to discuss the car with its owner. So ifthere is a message in my ramblings, perhaps it is that we are the ones chosen to bring these cars to thepublic’s attention. When we do, we are not just the private owners or stewards of our personal cars. Weare ambassadors to the public, charged with bringing our treasures into public view. In that way, we helpto outwardly reflect our love for our vehicles as well as perpetuate our hobby as a whole. So if you have theopportunity to drive your flathead vehicle in public, or bring it to a show in 2012, I encourage you to do so.I think you will feel good about having put a smile on the face of someone who otherwise might not have thechance to share in this beautiful part of our automotive heritage.

MARCH 2012 MEETING/BOARD MEETING MINUTESby Mark Williams, SecretaryBreakfast at the Mustang Café was a hit as there are other car clubs who also like to get together there too.Thanks to some good weather, a garage tour of Mild to Wild turned out to be a real good time.The April 21st Tour has been moved to April 28th to make room for Bob Agnew’s Spring Thaw event to benefitCuidando Los Niños which has five appointments left and are going fast. A special thanks to Sean fromSea-Nic 66 for coming by to talk paint. About ten members made it out for the Board Meeting on the 13thwhere we discussed Club Purpose w/Neva, made confirmation of the program for April, and the 1st SaturdayBreakfast.APRIL 2012 MEETING PROGRAMRoute 66 by Ed Boles and Club Purpose by Neva CoffeeRoute 66: Ed Boles will bring a presentation about historic motels on Central Avenue, Route 66. Ed worksfor the City of Albuquerque and has a wealth of knowledge about transportation in the Duke City. This willbe a very interesting presentation.Club Purpose: Neva Coffee, Director of Club Purpose, will speak about its importance to the group.

APRIL 2012 CLUB ACTIVITYSATURDAY, APRIL 28, GRANTS, URANIUM MINING MUSEUM & ICE CAVESby R. Jeff JacksonWelcome All. On April 28th our club will have the outstanding pleasure of a tour trip to Grants to visit theUranium Mining Museum and the Ice Caves. Recall in the late 1960's and early 70's Grants was “theuranium mining capital of the world.” The Uranium Museum takes visitors underground to get a simulatedview of mining techniques. Don’t worry, you travel the short distance underground in a comfortable elevator.While in Grants we will have a delicious (I hope) meal at the El Cafecito Mexican restaurant where we havea room reserved. After lunch we will travel south from Grants about 25 miles to the Ice Caves and for thosewho wish a short hike to the Bandera volcano.The tentative plan is to leave from the Jacksons’ house at 9:30 a.m., Saturday April 28th. The Jacksons areclose to Paseo and Coors (directions provided below). We will take Paseo west from Coors past the DoubleEagle airport to I-40. As much as practical we will use frontage roads and old 66 to get to Grants.Remember to bring your camera as there are interesting sights all along the route.We should arrive at the Mining Museum about 11 to 11:15 and have our tour completed in time for a nicelunch (about 12:30) before heading off to the Ice Caves. We anticipate leaving the Ice Caves to be back inAlbuquerque well before dark. There will be an open trailer with us the entire time just in case of abreakdown.This tour is planned for the weekend after the Spring Thaw so everyone will have a chance to get their carschecked out looking forward to the touring season. Let’s aim for a big turnout for this tour regardless if youare driving your flathead car or just sharing the pleasure of good company.Directions to Jackson house: From Montaño and Coors go north on Coors to Frontage Road. From Paseoand Coors go south on Coors to Frontage Road. Frontage Road is the turn into SIPI, note there is a Ramservice station at that corner.Turn (east) at the Ram Station and then immediate left and follow this road. River Point Health Centershould be on your right side (if it is on your left go back to the Ram Station and start again). Follow that roadit will parallel Coors to the north for a short distance then turn right (east) and go behind the River PointHealth Center past a green dinosaur and then make a right (south), to Calle de Alondra and turn left on Callede Alondra. Go to the second street Calle Picaflor. Jeff and Beth’s is the corner house at Calle de Alondraand Calle Picaflor and their address is 8322 Calle Picaflor NW. If it were easy to get to the house youwouldn’t need these detailed directions! Jackson cell phone is 505.908.7565.

MARCH TUMBLEWEED GARAGE TOURby Joyce ClementsOur tour turned out great in spite of a cool, breezy day. Sixteen people showed up at TNT Muffler Shop andlearned about mufflers and exhaust pipes. Brian knew a lot about various types of mufflers and is able toduplicate old, worn out pipes.We adjourned to Powdrell’s for BBQ. The staff was pleased to see us and provided us with excellent serviceand eats.Frank Corey’s southeast storage garages were our next stop, where we got to see a number of his niceFords and Mercurys. There were also a couple of Brand X cars, but they belonged to other folks. Frank’sFord collection is always good to see.Our next stop was Jay Hertz’s facility. Jay has many nice Fords, Chevrolets, and one lonesome Whippet,mostly from the 1930's. He has several cars under restoration, and they look really good. His shop is fullof his cars, parts, pictures and posters, old calendars, model railroads, World’s Fair souvenirs, and other neat“stuff.” There is too much to see in one visit. Jay also knows where it all came from and where it goes.Our final stop was at Jeff and Beth Jackson’s home. Hot coffee and homemade cookies were a welcometreat by this time. The Jacksons have a nice set of garages and a number of high-performance Fordproducts, including Mustangs, a Cobra, and a 1964 Galaxie, in addition to the 1948 Ford pickup andcustomized ‘38 Ford coupe. They have a nice setup to store and work on cars. All their vehicles have astory too.The tour took most of the day, but we all had a good time kicking tires and telling stories. Thank you to TNT,Frank Corey, Jay Hertz, and the Jacksons for their hospitality. It turned out to be a fabulous and fun day.

MAY 8, 2012 BOARD MEETINGBy Jay HertzHello, All. This is to let you know that we will be holding our May directors’/officers’ meeting of 2012 onTuesday, May 8, at my house, 8704 La Sala Del Sur, N.E. (phone 296-3137) beginning at 7:30 p.m. It isnear Wyoming and Candelaria. From that intersection, go east and take the second left-hand turn bay, whichis General Stillwell. Go to the end of General Stillwell, which is only about four blocks. Where it ends, thehouse on the right is mine. It is a corner house with a stop sign on the property. The entrance is on GeneralStillwell even though the address is on La Sala Del Sur. I will have refreshments. All members are welcometo our Board meetings.

SPRING THAW, WORLDWIDE AUTOMOTIVE, APRIL 21, 2012By Joyce ClementsWorldWide Automotive, next door to Old Car Garage, will host “Spring Thaw” on Saturday, April 21, from8:00am to 4:00pm. Make an appointment to have your car inspected for driving and get the oil changed.In exchange, you are expected to make a donation to Cuidando los Niños. Breakfast and lunch will beserved. You get to inspect the underside of your car, kick tires, eat good food, have your oil changed, andvisit with a lot of friends. At the same time, you’ll help support a very worthy cause. Call 881-2722 to makean appointment. The slots fill up fast.

SPECIAL CLUB ACTIVITYJUNE 29-30, 2012Drive to Ruidoso on Friday, June 29. Overnight will be at the Lodge at Sierra Blanca. Special rate is $100for the night (normal rate is $190). Phone number for the Lodge is (575)258-5500, and you must tell themyou are with the Classic Car Show. Included is a free BBQ dinner (brisket, sausage, ribs, etc.) to be servedto all show registrants on Friday night at the Lodge. Saturday, June 30, we will participate in the Car Showat the Ruidoso Convention Center. Registration for the show is $30. You will be able to pre-register whenthe forms are available in February. Checks should be made to Make-A-Wish Foundation, who will get allthe proceeds. Show is from 7:30am to 3:00pm. There are to be awards and prizes. Their web site iswww.newmexicoclassiccarshow.com if you wish to find out more. After the show we will drive back toAlbuquerque and should be home before dark.

MICKEY ROONEY’S 1940 LINCOLN CONTINENTALBy Casey Hayes of Hi Country RGRecently I read that Mickey Rooney’s Continental convertible had been identified and was being restored by acollector in California. The car was given to him by Henry Ford, while Mickey was doing a premiere showing of“Young Tom Edison” on February 9th, 1940.Mickey was an accomplished musician, playing the piano, banjo, saxophone and drums. He would occasionally“sit in” with Tommy Dorsey’s band when they were doing a film in Hollywood. Mickey, who was 19 years old at thetime, spent seven hours with Ford during his visit and played the organ for Mr. Ford at the Greenfield chapel.Spencer Tracy was there, and he suggested that Mickey play the part of Henry Ford in a historical feature of HenryFord, but apparently nothing ever came of it. Louis B. Mayer of M.M. Studios and the Governor attended.Mickey Rooney in his book, “Life Is Too Short,” describes the event. “After dinner, Henry Ford came up to me andasked me if I’d like to take a little walk with him. I said, ‘Certainly, Mr. Ford.’ So we trotted off, just the two of us,through a lot of hallways, and across a snowy, blowing parking lot, with guests and guards saluting us all the way,until we came to a kind of hanger-like building where they putting the finishing touches on a prototype of the classicLincoln Continental. ‘How would you like one of these?’ said Mr. Ford. My eyes bugged out at the sight of thisbeautiful automobile. I had loved my 1937 Ford convertible. But this car was to my old convertible as an orchardis to an apple. I said, ‘I’d be a liar if I said I wouldn’t, Mr. Ford.’ He said, ‘How would you like a blue one?’ I said,‘Mr. Ford, I would love a blue one.’ A couple months later, one of Mr. Ford’s men drove my blue Continental, withblue leather seats, right up to my dressing room at Metro. It had a special plaque on the dash: TO MY FRIENDMICKEY ROONEY FROM HIS FRIEND HENRY FORD. It was one of the nicest gifts I have ever received. I lovedit. I drove it proudly.“Clark Gable came to see it and, after eyeballing it as thoroughly as he would a fine woman or a fine racehorse,said, ‘Mind if I take it for a spin?’ I grinned and tossed him the keys. He drove it off the lot, sped up WashingtonBoulevard, and then, in about fifteen minutes he was back. ‘Thanks, kid,’ he growled. ‘Gotta get me one of these.’Clark got one, just like mine, blue too. Only difference was, he had to pay cash for his.”Mickey’s book is most interesting to read. He had eight wives and once said, “Always get married early in themorning – If it don’t work out, you haven’t ruined the whole day.”